Device for use in sports



April 7,- 1936.

DEVCE FOR USE 1N sPoRTs 2` sneetsheet l Filed May 27, 1952 API''Z' 1936`F. GIRAR ET AL 2,036,524

DEVICE FOR USE IN SPORTS rFiled May 27, 1932 2 Sheets-Sheel 2 PatentedApr. 7, 1936 UNTED STATES PATENT OFFICE DEVICE FOR USE IN SPORTS FritzGirard and Margarete Gottburg, Hanau-on-the-Main, Germany 9 Claims.

The present invention relates to a metal hoop that can be used in sportsfor many different purposes, that is to say it may be used for swingingand throwing (in the manner of a discus), or

Y for vtrundling and more particularly for jumping over and through, andfor crawling through while it is rolling.

If a metal hoop is to be used for throwing it fulls this purpose farbetter if it be made suf- 10 ficiently heavy and is provided with asuitable grip, and if furthermore it be so constructed that it is notdamaged or deformed by impact with the ground.

If the hoop is to be used forjumping through l5 or jumping over, it isadvisable to provide means to render these exercises increasinglydifcult. Finally, in both cases it may be advantageous to construct thehoop So that it can be taken to pieces so as to be easily carried.

20 All these purposes are served by the hoop according to the invention;this is eiected principally by the use of one or more members that canbe secured in any desired position around the periphery of the hoop,each body consisting of 25- two parts connected together, which grip asection of the hoop in the manner of tongs and are at the same time ofsuch shape that the outer tread of the hoop is left uncovered. Thismember may be so constructed that it can be used 30 as a grip forthrowing the hoop, and furthermore it may act as a lock for the loop atthe positions where the hoop is divided, and also it may be used asysecuring means for spoke-like members that are applied for stiifeningthe hoop when it is used 35 as a discus, and when used in jumpingexercises may serve as means for varying the free open space within thehoop.

The accompanying drawings illustrate by way of example a number ofdifferent hoops for use 40 in sports constructed according to theinvention.

Figure 1 shows a hoop a in its simplest form for throwing; it isprovided with a member b secured to the periphery of the hoop, thismember forming a convenient grip for the hand of the 45 thrower. Asecond grip may be provided diametrically opposite the grip b as shownin dotted lines, or a number of the grips may be distributed around theperiphery of the hoop to make it heavier. The hoop is advantageouslymade of an elastic material of great tensile strength such as springsteel or beryllium bronze, and it may be solid or hollow, and it maymoreover be circular in cross-section, or better still elliptical or beof any other shape in cross-sec- 55 tion, that is, wider one way of theplane than in the other. It is particularly insensitive to shocks if itbe made of a number of braided or twisted wires a', (as shown in Figures1a and 1b) the wires being held together by strips of material woundround or provided with a rubber covering 5 a which may be vulcanizedwhen in position.

Figure 2 illustrates by way of example a section of a hoop provided withtwo clamping members b one of which has a hole 11 for the securing ofstifening members c. A modified form of 10 the gripping member is shownat b", shown in cross-section in Figure 3. The stiffening members thatserve to prevent deformation, consist advantageously of wires or bicyclespokes provided at each end with a rivet head. As will be 15 seen fromFigure 3 the clamping body b (or b) consists of two parts held togetherby screws d and clamped to the hoop a. The parts are so shaped that thegreater part of them lie within the hoop but do not completely surroundthe metal of the hoop. As shown in Figure 4 the wires c are disposedradially in the hoop, one end of the wires engaging in a small centrallydisposed ring e; according to Figure 5 the wires e are disposed to forma triangle and are provided with tensioning members c which on rotationregulate the length of the wires in known manner. The clamping members bshown in Figure 1 may at the same time serve as members for joiningtogether the sections of the hoop when this is built up of two or moreparts. f Figure 6 shows a half of such a locking member, and Figure 7shows the complete locking member in cross-section. Each lock consistsof two clamping jaws b1 and b2 which are held together by screws d andwhich are formed on one side like tong grippers, while on the other sidethey bear directly against each other at f by projecting parts. In orderthat the two ends of the hoop a. maybe held in position they areprovided with beak-like projections a0 or similar projections which tinto suitable recesses in the jaws b1 or b2 or lie against stops suchfor example as screws d. A modified construction of the locking memberis shown in cross-section in Figure 8.for use with a hoop that is builtup of braided wires, and is provided at the ends with extensions byflattening out the metal of the hoop or by pouring-in additional metal.Alternatively the two jaws of the clamping body may be provided withprojections and the ends of the hoop sections with recesses, or thescrews d may engage in suitable grooves provided at the ends of thehoop. The two jaws may be connected together by hinges at f.

Figures and 10 show a clamping body b which is of such construction thatit is adapted to serve as a locking member for the hoop and as scouringmeans for adjustable spoke-like members, which when moved, change thefree open space within the hoop when it is used for jumping through orcrawling through. The jaw b1 is provided with an extension b having ahole in it into fits a rotating pin g advantageously slotted andresilient so that it is tightly held in position by friction. The pin gis provided with a sleeve y', the hole being at right angles to the axisof the pin into which engages the resilient pin 8 of similarconstruction whose end h is employed for securing the spoke. z'. n

Thus the spokes may be twisted from the position shown diagrammaticallyin Figure 11, in which the largest op-ening in the hoop is adjusted intoany other position. as shown for example in Figure 12 in which the freeopen space within the hoop is reduced as shown by the dotted circle, soas to make it more diiicult to jump or crawl through. `At the same timethe spokes i may be moved out of the position shown in crosssection inFigure 13 to both sides according to Figure 14 in order to increase thediculty of jumping over therolling hoop. The spokes may advantageouslybe provided at. their free ends with balls i' to avoid danger.

If the hoop is to be used only for jumping exercises the hinged-.onmembers bmay be soldered on and in that case may be of more simpleconstruction as shown in Figures land 16.

Figures 17 and 18 iilustrate a modified con-v struction of theadjustable members for altering the free open space within the hoop.Each two adjacent clamping members b are connected together by flexiblemembers lc and for the purpose memberssuch as wires in the form ofhelices may be employed.

By altering the distance between the two members b, the members lc canbe changed from the stretched position as shown in Figure 17 into. acurved position as shown in Figure 18 so that the free open space withinthe hoopy is reduced. The clamping members b may both be adjustable orone of each may be secured to the hoop. and soldered' on as show-n inFigures 15 and 16. ItI will be understood that some of the members b mayserve as locking members in the case 4of a hoop built up from a numberof sections. Y

In jumping and more particularlyV to facilitate crawling through therolling hoopv it is advantageous to form thehoop so that its rollingmovement maybe retarded periodically. For the purpose irregularly shapedhoops such aselliptical hoops may be employed. The same purpose isattained more simply by means of clamping members according to theinvention, that is to say by securing one or more such members on oneside of the hoop or asymmetrically so that the weight of the hoop isunevenly distributed.

What we claim as new and desire to secure by LettersPatent of the UnitedStates, is:

1. A metal hoop for athletic exercises with at least one jointing pointon the periphery and provided with a plurality of clamping members, eachmember consisting of two jaws connected together and lying on the insideof the hoop, at least one of the said members forming a hand grip andatleast one of them serving as a locking means for joining the ends ofthe hoop, said ends increasing in cross-section towards the joint andbeing fitted into interlocking recesses of the jaws.

2. A metal hoop for athletic exercises with at least one jointing pointVon the periphery and provided with a plurality of clamping members, eachmember consisting of two jaws connected together and lying on the insideof the hoop, a number of these members being supports for blockingmembers and at least one of the said clamping members serving as alocking means for joining the ends of the hoop, said ends increasing incross-section towards the joint and being fitted into interlockingrecesses of the jaws.

3. A metal hoop for athletic exercises with at least one jointing pointon the periphery and provided with aplurality ci clamping members, eachmember consisting of two jaws connected to- I gether and. lying on theinside of the hoop, the members being distributed in equal distances andconnected together in pairs inside the hoop by tensioning members and atleast one of the, said clamping members serving as a locking means forjoining the ends of the hoop, said endsY increasing in cross-sectiontowardsr the joint and being tted into interlocking recesses of thejaws.

4. A metal hoop for athletic exercises with at least one jointing pointon the periphery, being composed of braided wire of a strong and elasticmaterial and provided with at least one clamping member consisting ofVtwo jaws connected together and lying on the inside of the'hoop, thesaid clamping member being formed both as a hand grip and as a lockingmeans for joining the ends of the braided wire, said ends being bentrelative to-the periphery of the hoop and held in position by recessesof the said jaws.

5. A metal hoop for athletic exercises provided with at least onejointing point on the pe- Y riphery, they two ends of the hoop beingconnected at each jointing position by a lookingv member, said lockingmember consisting or" twojaws touching one another only by projectingborders at the edges furthest from the periphery of the hoop and pressedtogether by screw connection in the middle part, the jaws lying` on theinside of the hoop and leaving thev tread uncovered, Vsaid ends of thehoop increasingV in cross-section towards the joint and being tted intointeriocking recesses ofthe jaws. Y

6. A metal hoop for athletic exercises provided with at least onejointing position on the periphery, the two ends of the hoop beingconnected at each jointing point by a lockingl member, said lockingmember consisting of two jaws which lie on the inside of the hoop andleave its tread uncovered and of two screws for pressing the two bodiestogether, the screws formingy stops for beak-like projections at theends of the hoop and thuspreventing the latter from springing out.

7. A metal hoop for athletic exercises provided with a plurality ofblocking members distributed around the periphery and being of such aradial dimension as Vto leave a free opening inthe center of the hoop, ahinge with an axle perpendicular to the plane of Vthe hoop connectingeach f.

blocking member andthe inside of the hoop, this hinge connectionpermitting to alter the position of each blocking member asto'thedistance from the center point of the hoop, and clampingv means on thehinge for holding each blockingk member Y in the adjusted position byfriction.

8. A metal hoop for athletic exercises provided with a plurality ofblocking members distributed around the periphery'and being of such aradial dimension as to leave a free opening in the center of the hoop,each blocking member being fastened to the hoop by at least one jawmember lying on the inside of the hoop and leaving its tread uncovered,a hinge with an axle perpendicular to the plane of the hoop beinginserted between each blocking member and each jaw member, this hingeconnection permitting to alter the position of each blocking member asto the distance from the center point of the hoop, and clamping means onthe hinge for holding each blocking member in the adjusted position byfriction.

9. A metal hoop for athletic exercises provided with a plurality ofblocking members distributed around the periphery and being of such a.radial length as to leave a free opening in the center of the hoop, adouble hinge with axles Within and perpendicular to the plane of thehoop connecting each blocking member and the inside of the hoop, thisdouble hinge connection permitting to alter the position of eachblocking member as to the plane and to the distance from the centerpoint of the hoop, and clamping means on each hinge for holding eachblocking member in the adjusted 10 position by friction.l

FRITZ GIRARD. MARGARETE GOTTBURG.

